Many product applications require glass powders that have one or more of the following properties: high purity, controlled chemistry, spherical morphology, small average size, narrow size distribution, and little or no agglomeration. Examples of glass powder applications requiring such characteristics include, but are not limited to, thick film pastes used for fabricating electronic devices. Thick film pastes are mixtures of the powders in an organic vehicle, wherein the organic vehicle is removed after application of the paste to a substrate by firing the composition at elevated temperatures.
Aerosol decomposition of an atomized liquid spray of precursor solution is a useful method for producing generally spherical glass particles. In such a process, a precursor solution containing the elements desired in the final glass is atomized to produce an aerosol. The aerosol particles are then transported through a reaction tube where the solvent is removed and the aerosol particles are heated to a temperature sufficiently high to convert the precursor compounds to the product glass particles. At these high temperatures a suitable material of construction reactor tube needs to be used.
There is need for improved aerosol methods useful for the production of glass powders. There is also a need for glasses with improved properties, and methods of making glasses. In addition, there is a need for improved devices useful in the methods of making glasses by aerosol methods.